Moose Jaw is a city in south-central Saskatchewan, Canada on the Moose Jaw River. It is situated on the Trans-Canada Highway 71 kilometres (44 mi) west of Regina. Residents of Moose Jaw are known as Moose Javians. It is best known as a retirement and tourist city that serves as a hub to the hundreds of small towns and farms in the surrounding region of Saskatchewan.[citation needed]

The name Moose Jaw comes from the Plains Cree name moscâstani-sîpiy meaning "a warm place by the river", indicative of the protection from the weather that the Coteau Range provides to the river valley containing the city.[1]

Tourist attractions include the Tunnels of Moose Jaw, The Moose Jaw Trolley, the Temple Gardens Mineral Spa, Captain Jacks River Boat Tour, The Western Development Museum, Casino Moose Jaw and the Murals of Moose Jaw. Every July the Saskatchewan Festival of Words takes place over a four-day period showcasing top Canadian writers in a wide variety of genres. The Snowbirds flight demonstration team is based at CFB Moose Jaw, south of Moose Jaw in Bushell Park.

There are many parks in Moose Jaw. Crescent Park is located downtown and features a creek, swans, and an amphitheatre. "Wakamow Park" follows the Moose Jaw River and features both natural and maintained areas. There are many trails throughout the park for hiking and biking. There are also RV camping and canoe rentals in the park.

Economy

Near the northern terminus of Sk Hwy 39 is Moose Jaw, also called "Little Chicago". Moose Jaw, is a city of 35,689 at the Sk Hwy 1 Trans–Canada and Sk Hwy 2 intersection.[2] Capone's Car, Moose Family and Mac the Moose are all large roadside attractions of Moose Jaw.[3] Moose Jaw Trolley Company (1912) is still offering trolley tours of Moose Jaw. Temple Garden's Mineral Spa,[4] Tunnels of Moose Jaw,[5] and History of Transportation Western Development Museum.[6] are major sites of interest of this city.[7] The juncture of Moose Jaw and Thunder Creek produced the best source of water for steam engines, and Moose Jaw became the CPR divisional point.[8] AgPro Inland Grain Terminal operated by Saskatchewan Wheat Pool.[9] These large capacity concrete grain terminals are replacing the smaller grain elevators which were numerous along the highway, sentinels of most communities along the route. Improved technology for harvest, transport and road construction have made the large inland terminals more viable economically.[10] The rural governing body around Moose Jaw is Moose Jaw No. 161 which serves 1,228 residents (2006 census) which includes the Moose Jaw, Canadian Forces Base. Meat-processing plants, salt, potash, urea fertilizer, anhydrous ammonia and ethanol producers abound in this area with easy transport access to the Trans–Canada Highway.[2][11]

In 1917, a group of local residents banded together and purchased enough automobile parts to build 25 cars. These were to be manufactured under the name Moose Jaw Standard. Each member of the group was able to receive a car, but no further buyers were found, and production did not continue.[12]

The Earl of Wessex (Prince Edward) became Colonel-in-Chief of the Saskatchewan Dragoons of Moose Jaw on visiting Saskatchewan in 2003, when he congratulated the regiment on its "contribution to Canada's proud tradition of citizen-soldiers in the community." Involved in peacekeeping operations in Cyprus, the Golan Heights, Bosnia and Croatia, the regiment has also provided aid during floods and forest fires in the prairies. The Prince returned to visit his regiment in 2006.

The Earl of Wessex also inaugurated the Queen's Jubilee Rose Garden in Moose Jaw on his visit in 2003. Other Royal connections to the city include King George School and Prince Arthur Community School, both named for members of the Royal Family. Before it shut down and became Cornerstone Christian School, the South Hill school was formerly named King Edward Elementary School.

Sports teams

Like most Canadian cities, hockey has played a large part of Moose Jaw's sporting culture, yet baseball has also been an important part of Moose Jaw since its first days as the city won territorial championships in 1895. Most recently, the 2004 Junior All-Star team (age 13/14) won the Canadian Championship and became the first team from Saskatchewan to win a game at the Little League World Series.

Ku Klux Klan

Although Moose Jaw is known as the 'Friendly City', it is not well known that the city was the centre of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) in Saskatchewan. The first KKK rally in Moose Jaw was held on June 7, 1927, with over four hundred members attending. The second (and last) Klan rally was held on 26 October 1927. It was held only ten days after the KKK organizer Hugh Emmons's arrest. Over one thousand people attended. It was the last rally, but in 1929 the KKK sponsored a Labour Day picnic in River Park. There were racist speeches and a cross burning.[14][15]

Arts and culture

The mineral spa in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan.

Museums

Moose Jaw is home to one of four Western Development Museums which specializes in history of transportation and has a Snowbirds gallery.[55] The Sukanen Ship Pioneer Village and Museum is located south of Moose Jaw on Sk Hwy 2. The car club at Moose Jaw agreed to the restoration of Tom Sukanen's ship at their museum site. Tom Sukanen was a Finnish homesteader who settled near Birsay who hoped to travel home again on his ship he assembled near the South Saskatchewan River. The Sukanen Ship Pioneer Village and Museum features a typical village replete with pioneer artifacts and tractors, cars and trucks restored by the Moose Jaw car club, and is run by volunteers.[56]

Tunnels of Moose Jaw

In the early 1900s, most of the larger buildings in Moose Jaw were heated by steam. The engineers who maintained the coal-fired boilers in the basements arranged for the creation of an elaborate network of tunnels linking them so that they could move themselves and their equipment from building to building without facing the harsh winter weather.

At about the same time, numerous Chinese indentured labourers who arrived in Moose Jaw to work for what were, by Canadian standards, very low wages, adopted the tunnel system as living quarters and workplaces which were both inexpensive and sheltered from a sometimes hostile populace.

During Prohibition Moose Jaw became a center for distribution of bootleg liquor, both domestically and to the United States via the Soo Line Railroad to Chicago, earning the town the nickname "Little Chicago". Illegal enterprises such as speakeasies, casinos, and brothels sprang up within the concealment and shelter of the tunnels. Moose Jaw folklore states that Al Capone himself was resident for some time, to oversee operations and/or to hide out from law enforcement, although there is no verifiable evidence to prove this.

Over time, the tunnels fell into disuse and many were filled in or blocked off by new construction. However, an elaborate tourist attraction featuring live actors and animatronics has been created within what remains of the system, featuring tours illustrating the stories of the Chinese immigrants and bootlegging, and attracting over 100,000 visitors per year.[57][58]

Statistics

Moose Jaw's population grew to 32,132 according to the 2006 census, which showed virtually no increase from 2001.[59]According to the Canada 2006 Census:[60]